Official Episode Discussion S4 Ep 15: City At War - Page 2

cryan · 08-14-2016, 09:58 AM

I loved it as well.

The Happy One · 08-14-2016, 10:13 AM

I did like it...but, yeah April...

It seems like they're at a standstill with how to handle her just right. One scene she gets beat down, other scenes she's very op.

I think they could have taken their time to get things started. I feel like we just...jumped in.

Maybe it's just me, but I would've loved to ease my way into this.

And like Powder, GoldMutant and Vicky said this wasn't City at War. They only mentioned a possibility of a gang war but it had little to no homage to the City at War comic arc.

Still, I did enjoy Shini! She really caught my attention the first second she appeared.

Huzzah · 08-14-2016, 10:30 AM

I'm hoping future iterations of TMNT realize that April is superfluous to the plot after her earliest introduction as the initial link to the human world. After that she should just be relegated to an occasional appearance, similarly Casey Jones. Both of those characters eventually become a pain to watch when they're forced into appearances. They become the Yamcha or Bulma of the TMNT Universe. Characters who start important but are eventually overshadowed by characters that outrank them in every form. Use them in the beginning, demote them to extras after newer allies come in.

~~TMNTInsighter~~ · 08-14-2016, 10:42 AM

It is so good to review an episode again. A 111 day wait is unacceptable.
Anyhow, I give this a B (4 out of 5)

The second half of this season wastes no time jumping into what lies ahead for New York now that the space travels are over (though not exactly concluded; note Sal, Mona, Dregg, Newtralizer, even Bishop during the opening titles). After a very quick and artful opening--mostly because of the Japanese dialogue--we jump right into the war that Karai is planning. As a matter of fact, this episode sets up Karai--not April--as the more interesting character not only in this episode (despite April's final heroics) but perhaps the most key character to this season, setting up a lot of potential. But more on that soon.

To get the most obvious out of the way, a lot is attempted in establishing April's attempts at living up to her new title as well as the capabilities and demeanor of Shinigami in addition to Karai's first stage of weakening what's left of Shredder's hold on the city. So much is attempted in fact that small but significant matters such as heartfelt reunions and dynamics are whisked over.

Now that that's out of the way, let's take a look at Karai, whose actions in trying to take over the Foot make a lot of sense (despite the hesitation from those she loves). Saki felt that the Hamato clan lied to and stole him from his rightful heritage all those years ago so he hurt them back. Years later, he does the same with Karai and she yearns to inflict upon him those same consequences. The child turning on her parents (in most cases the father) is a tale told time and time again and though Karai is in fact Yoshi's daughter, he wisely points out that she is most connected to Saki.

Yoshi and the turtles however act as the pieces of a melodramatic farrago towards Karai's ambitions. All credit to them for wishing for Karai's wellbeing but she also has a point. Her search for renewal within the Foot Clan goes beyond palliatives and more towards a cure for both the city and those she loves. After all, with her in charge, hostilities towards her family could cease, she would help to ensure her real father's wellbeing, perhaps even find a way to control the crime level in the city. Additionally, she has shown that this is not a straightforward, hasty assassination attempt but a meticulously thought out step by step process. She's even bringing allies into her circle since she has the wisdom from experience that she can't do this alone.

kelligrafie · 08-14-2016, 10:45 AM

Was that a Hannibal Lecter reference we got from Splinter when he's nibbling on his cheesicle?

Maybe the reason Shredder's so messed up is because his old friend ate his liver with some fava beans and a nice chianti.

~~TMNTInsighter~~ · 08-14-2016, 10:59 AM

Karley's review on tumblr--hey she deserves some recognition here. After all, she is better than Max: http://all-things-tmnt.tumblr.com/po...on-city-at-war

Ashwolf · 08-14-2016, 11:07 AM

liked the fight scenes in it but didnt care much 4 the ep otherwise

shinigami does seem like a interesting character, she had some pretty wicked sweet moments, think i like her almost as much as i like karai

~~TMNTInsighter~~ · 08-14-2016, 11:21 AM

A couple of points left out from my review include Shinigami reminding me a lot of Gogo from "Kill Bill" in her fight with Tiger Claw. It shows that even though she didn't win, she's not someone to be underestimated and I really liked that.

There's also Leo's talk with April about doubt being poison. Even though it sounds difficult to believe that he'll follow that advice, he still knows that it's one of his flaws and just like anyone else, he wouldn't want his own flaws to affect someone else whom he cares for.

*Ninjinister* · 08-14-2016, 11:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TMNTInsighter

Karley's review on tumblr--hey she deserves some recognition here. After all, she is better than Max: http://all-things-tmnt.tumblr.com/po...on-city-at-war

Who? And also who?

thundermaster612 · 08-14-2016, 11:33 AM

What happened to Shredder? When Splinter beat him up he didn't cause him to have his face in bandages unless I'm forgetting something. Also was he injected with mutagen at the end? that blue stuff kinda didn't look like it but it could've been.

*Vicky82* · 08-14-2016, 11:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ninjinister

Who? And also who?

She's just a fan but her TMNT reviews are good.

Quote:

Originally Posted by thundermaster612

What happened to Shredder? When Splinter beat him up he didn't cause him to have his face in bandages unless I'm forgetting something. Also was he injected with mutagen at the end? that blue stuff kinda didn't look like it but it could've been.

Splinter must have done some real damage to Shredder in there fight in Earth's Last Stand. That was mutagen, Baxter must have done something to it to make sure Shredder turns into Super Shredder and not turn into a blob.

tmntsplinterfan1997 · 08-14-2016, 11:40 AM

You know the episode is great with Shinigami.

And I was wondering about the ending. You know the foreshadowing of Super Shredder.

*oldmanwinters* · 08-14-2016, 11:52 AM

April is the Gohan equivalent of this show. One minute getting slapped around and moping about it... the next moment "you won't like me when I'm angry!!!"

kelligrafie · 08-14-2016, 11:57 AM

Good
Shinigami looks like such a cool character. I've been looking forward to seeing her since the panel at SDCC. I didn't feel let down. Although it seems like, she's under Karai as a leader for now, but could go rogue against her friend in the future. She has that vibe about her, which could generate some good stories. Gwendoline Yeo is so enthusiastic about this role.

Tiger Claw was on form for me as always. I just love the big guy. He's one of the few that can provide action AND humour and even though some of it is slapstick-esque, it's not cringeworthy. He's a great enemy because the fights between him and the turtles are quite balanced overall. He feels menacing, you know that he could very well take them down. Whereas the other henchmen all start off being dastardly and then descend into being incompetent fools, Tiger Claw is still a worthy adversary.

Yes to Karai back after being missing for so long now. People have been complaining for so long about the lack of female characters in this show, so now she's returned and brought Shini along, I think the team are addressing the balance. I also like how she still has her mutation but can also opt to just be 'human' Karai. Plus Kelly Hu is such a boss.

Also great to have Splinter back. The bond that he and April have is incredibly sweet.

The moment with Leo, Splinter and April drinking tea and talking. It's not just another scene with Splinter dishing out the sage advice, it's Leo as well, using his own experience to try and help April.

Shredder's new hideout looks pretty cool even though we only see a little bit of it.

Fish Face being unable to see in the dark. ROFL.

The dragon's 'tail'. I don't care if it's immature. There will always be something funny to me about a guy getting one in the nuts.

April's ceremony taking place on full moon... when it's always full moon in this series.

Do I sense that we may get a Jean Grey/Phoenix style storyline with April?

Not sure if good or bad
THAT Chris Bradford show. It's so cringe. But fairplay for the accuracy of the send up.

Bad
April's abilities.

I don't think she's a bad character. There is clearly so much potential. I think the problem is the lack of consistency with her ninjitsu and psychic abilities. I can swallow her becoming a kunoich in four years. Yes the turtles took a lot longer but then again they started when they were young children. If you take people with average abilities and one is 5 and the other 15, the 15 year old will learn a skill much quicker. I also don't mind the notion of her being psychic, it's just handled really clumsily. The team will be in an unwinnable situation and then suddenly her psychic powers, which won't have been seen or mentioned for half a season, suddenly come out of nowhere and save the day. You can attribute some of the consistency issues with the show having several different writers, and the running order of episodes in a season changing around, but not all of them. You should still get a fairly steady increase in development, but here it's either all or nothing. And it's really causing people to not like her, which isn't fair.

*oldmanwinters* · 08-14-2016, 12:01 PM

That was amazing when Karai went snake on Tigerclaw. Too bad it wasn't entirely effective. Guess she should have just kicked him in the groin.

*TurtleTitan97* · 08-14-2016, 12:15 PM

I enjoyed the episode. Shingami was a great character. Also looking forward to Dark April and Super Shredder.

`NightWatcher · 08-14-2016, 12:37 PM

This was a solidly epic return for Nick's TMNT. I'd give it a 9/10 if I wrote a review. For those saying they should not have used the title "City at War," the producers used this name to mark the beginning of what's expected to be the next huge TMNT 2012 arc. With that said, this episode served as an introduction, and the next few episodes will really showcase a "City at War" (Don Visio, Stockman and his insects, Tiger Claw, the purple dragons, etc.).

The fight scenes were great, Shinigami was a great new addition, and it'll be very interesting to see how Auman and company continue this storyline. As for the Shredder, if you honestly believe that Splinter inflicted that mass amount of damage onto him, you're crazy. I believe that Stockman did multiple experiments on the Shredder post-Earth's Last Stand, and judging Saki's condition, not all of them went well. However, Stockman just seemed to perfect his Mutagen Steroids, and he fed it to the Shredder during this episode's end. Shredder will eventually reemerge, juiced to the eyeball, and he'll have his way with the Turtles. Why would Shredder do this if he was already dominant and able to beat the Turtles? Simple - Master Splinter (I mean, did you see what he did to him last episode?)

All in all, this episode was a superb entry, and I'm looking forward to seeing how it plays out. Next week: The Broken Foot!

P.S.

How was April OP? She lost to Shinigami (twice). Fishface got the better of her. And she only "defeated" Tiger Claw after throwing smoke in his face, and nailing him with a low blow. Not sure how that's OP.

*victory_angel* · 08-14-2016, 12:37 PM

I can't place where the Shredder's new lair is in the TMNT universe. But it kinda looked like Falling Water by Frank Lloyd Wright.

*Autbot_Benz* · 08-14-2016, 12:39 PM

I was wondering if with this version of Super Shredder they are going the route of bane, where Shredder clicks a button on his arm and the mutagen makes grow massive and super muscular.

matteso586 · 08-14-2016, 12:43 PM

Even after two seasons, Tiger Claw is still a bada** crafty genius. He even quickly noticed that Karai called for help.

Shinigami being an old friend from Japan, makes me want to see a flashback of Karai's childhood.

If Within the Woods taught us anything, mutagenic medicine i not going to end well.

Wish I could see that new intro in slow motion. So I could easily identify who's in the "good guys win, the bad guys lose" part.

View Poll Results: City At War
Shinigami is awesome and a bad ass.	32	47.76%
Dark April incoming.	17	25.37%
Love the new villains lair.	4	5.97%
Super Shredder incoming.	14	20.90%
Voters: 67. You may not vote on this poll

08-14-2016, 10:30 AM	#23
Huzzah Mad Scientist Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Independence, Louisiana Posts: 1,124	I'm hoping future iterations of TMNT realize that April is superfluous to the plot after her earliest introduction as the initial link to the human world. After that she should just be relegated to an occasional appearance, similarly Casey Jones. Both of those characters eventually become a pain to watch when they're forced into appearances. They become the Yamcha or Bulma of the TMNT Universe. Characters who start important but are eventually overshadowed by characters that outrank them in every form. Use them in the beginning, demote them to extras after newer allies come in. __________________ https://www.flickr.com/photos/93225684@N02/ https://tmntnextmutation.wordpress.com/

08-14-2016, 10:45 AM	#25
kelligrafie Stone Warrior Join Date: Apr 2013 Location: Huddersfield, UK Posts: 840	Was that a Hannibal Lecter reference we got from Splinter when he's nibbling on his cheesicle? Maybe the reason Shredder's so messed up is because his old friend ate his liver with some fava beans and a nice chianti. __________________ "You don't see (Shredder) calling Rahzar 'Chris'." victory_angel "When it's not what I'd like it to be, I still enjoy it." ElectricN

08-14-2016, 11:07 AM	#27
Ashwolf Stone Warrior Join Date: May 2013 Posts: 540	liked the fight scenes in it but didnt care much 4 the ep otherwise shinigami does seem like a interesting character, she had some pretty wicked sweet moments, think i like her almost as much as i like karai __________________

08-14-2016, 11:33 AM	#30
thundermaster612 Mad Scientist Join Date: Nov 2015 Location: Ninjago City Posts: 1,214	What happened to Shredder? When Splinter beat him up he didn't cause him to have his face in bandages unless I'm forgetting something. Also was he injected with mutagen at the end? that blue stuff kinda didn't look like it but it could've been. __________________

08-14-2016, 09:58 AM	#21
cryan Stone Warrior Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: Athens,AL Posts: 743	I loved it as well.

08-14-2016, 10:13 AM	#22
The Happy One Hench Mutant Join Date: Sep 2015 Location: The...Earth?? Posts: 299	I did like it...but, yeah April... It seems like they're at a standstill with how to handle her just right. One scene she gets beat down, other scenes she's very op. I think they could have taken their time to get things started. I feel like we just...jumped in. Maybe it's just me, but I would've loved to ease my way into this. And like Powder, GoldMutant and Vicky said this wasn't City at War. They only mentioned a possibility of a gang war but it had little to no homage to the City at War comic arc. Still, I did enjoy Shini! She really caught my attention the first second she appeared.

08-14-2016, 10:42 AM	#24
~~TMNTInsighter~~ Banned Join Date: Jan 2016 Location: South Carolina Posts: 429	It is so good to review an episode again. A 111 day wait is unacceptable. Anyhow, I give this a B (4 out of 5) The second half of this season wastes no time jumping into what lies ahead for New York now that the space travels are over (though not exactly concluded; note Sal, Mona, Dregg, Newtralizer, even Bishop during the opening titles). After a very quick and artful opening--mostly because of the Japanese dialogue--we jump right into the war that Karai is planning. As a matter of fact, this episode sets up Karai--not April--as the more interesting character not only in this episode (despite April's final heroics) but perhaps the most key character to this season, setting up a lot of potential. But more on that soon. To get the most obvious out of the way, a lot is attempted in establishing April's attempts at living up to her new title as well as the capabilities and demeanor of Shinigami in addition to Karai's first stage of weakening what's left of Shredder's hold on the city. So much is attempted in fact that small but significant matters such as heartfelt reunions and dynamics are whisked over. Now that that's out of the way, let's take a look at Karai, whose actions in trying to take over the Foot make a lot of sense (despite the hesitation from those she loves). Saki felt that the Hamato clan lied to and stole him from his rightful heritage all those years ago so he hurt them back. Years later, he does the same with Karai and she yearns to inflict upon him those same consequences. The child turning on her parents (in most cases the father) is a tale told time and time again and though Karai is in fact Yoshi's daughter, he wisely points out that she is most connected to Saki. Yoshi and the turtles however act as the pieces of a melodramatic farrago towards Karai's ambitions. All credit to them for wishing for Karai's wellbeing but she also has a point. Her search for renewal within the Foot Clan goes beyond palliatives and more towards a cure for both the city and those she loves. After all, with her in charge, hostilities towards her family could cease, she would help to ensure her real father's wellbeing, perhaps even find a way to control the crime level in the city. Additionally, she has shown that this is not a straightforward, hasty assassination attempt but a meticulously thought out step by step process. She's even bringing allies into her circle since she has the wisdom from experience that she can't do this alone.

08-14-2016, 10:59 AM	#26
~~TMNTInsighter~~ Banned Join Date: Jan 2016 Location: South Carolina Posts: 429	Karley's review on tumblr--hey she deserves some recognition here. After all, she is better than Max: http://all-things-tmnt.tumblr.com/po...on-city-at-war

08-14-2016, 11:21 AM	#28
~~TMNTInsighter~~ Banned Join Date: Jan 2016 Location: South Carolina Posts: 429	A couple of points left out from my review include Shinigami reminding me a lot of Gogo from "Kill Bill" in her fight with Tiger Claw. It shows that even though she didn't win, she's not someone to be underestimated and I really liked that. There's also Leo's talk with April about doubt being poison. Even though it sounds difficult to believe that he'll follow that advice, he still knows that it's one of his flaws and just like anyone else, he wouldn't want his own flaws to affect someone else whom he cares for.

08-14-2016, 11:40 AM	#32
tmntsplinterfan1997 Foot Soldier Join Date: Jan 2016 Location: Oakley, CA Posts: 206	You know the episode is great with Shinigami. And I was wondering about the ending. You know the foreshadowing of Super Shredder. __________________ "Focus on the goal at hand." -Master Splinter / Hamato Yoshi

08-14-2016, 11:52 AM	#33
oldmanwinters Overlord Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Between yesterday and tomorrow! Posts: 15,436	April is the Gohan equivalent of this show. One minute getting slapped around and moping about it... the next moment "you won't like me when I'm angry!!!" __________________ Experience the TMNT Fan Commentaries! Check out my TMNT fan comic, "Nothing to Fear"! View my sketch work! I'm selling some of my hard-to-find TMNT items!

08-14-2016, 11:57 AM	#34
kelligrafie Stone Warrior Join Date: Apr 2013 Location: Huddersfield, UK Posts: 840	Good Shinigami looks like such a cool character. I've been looking forward to seeing her since the panel at SDCC. I didn't feel let down. Although it seems like, she's under Karai as a leader for now, but could go rogue against her friend in the future. She has that vibe about her, which could generate some good stories. Gwendoline Yeo is so enthusiastic about this role. Tiger Claw was on form for me as always. I just love the big guy. He's one of the few that can provide action AND humour and even though some of it is slapstick-esque, it's not cringeworthy. He's a great enemy because the fights between him and the turtles are quite balanced overall. He feels menacing, you know that he could very well take them down. Whereas the other henchmen all start off being dastardly and then descend into being incompetent fools, Tiger Claw is still a worthy adversary. Yes to Karai back after being missing for so long now. People have been complaining for so long about the lack of female characters in this show, so now she's returned and brought Shini along, I think the team are addressing the balance. I also like how she still has her mutation but can also opt to just be 'human' Karai. Plus Kelly Hu is such a boss. Also great to have Splinter back. The bond that he and April have is incredibly sweet. The moment with Leo, Splinter and April drinking tea and talking. It's not just another scene with Splinter dishing out the sage advice, it's Leo as well, using his own experience to try and help April. Shredder's new hideout looks pretty cool even though we only see a little bit of it. Fish Face being unable to see in the dark. ROFL. The dragon's 'tail'. I don't care if it's immature. There will always be something funny to me about a guy getting one in the nuts. April's ceremony taking place on full moon... when it's always full moon in this series. Do I sense that we may get a Jean Grey/Phoenix style storyline with April? Not sure if good or bad THAT Chris Bradford show. It's so cringe. But fairplay for the accuracy of the send up. Bad April's abilities. I don't think she's a bad character. There is clearly so much potential. I think the problem is the lack of consistency with her ninjitsu and psychic abilities. I can swallow her becoming a kunoich in four years. Yes the turtles took a lot longer but then again they started when they were young children. If you take people with average abilities and one is 5 and the other 15, the 15 year old will learn a skill much quicker. I also don't mind the notion of her being psychic, it's just handled really clumsily. The team will be in an unwinnable situation and then suddenly her psychic powers, which won't have been seen or mentioned for half a season, suddenly come out of nowhere and save the day. You can attribute some of the consistency issues with the show having several different writers, and the running order of episodes in a season changing around, but not all of them. You should still get a fairly steady increase in development, but here it's either all or nothing. And it's really causing people to not like her, which isn't fair. __________________ "You don't see (Shredder) calling Rahzar 'Chris'." victory_angel "When it's not what I'd like it to be, I still enjoy it." ElectricN

08-14-2016, 12:01 PM	#35
oldmanwinters Overlord Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Between yesterday and tomorrow! Posts: 15,436	That was amazing when Karai went snake on Tigerclaw. Too bad it wasn't entirely effective. Guess she should have just kicked him in the groin. __________________ Experience the TMNT Fan Commentaries! Check out my TMNT fan comic, "Nothing to Fear"! View my sketch work! I'm selling some of my hard-to-find TMNT items!

08-14-2016, 12:15 PM	#36
TurtleTitan97 Space Cowboy Join Date: Dec 2011 Location: Speed Force Posts: 7,043	I enjoyed the episode. Shingami was a great character. Also looking forward to Dark April and Super Shredder. __________________

08-14-2016, 12:37 PM	#37
`NightWatcher Random Punk Join Date: Feb 2016 Location: New York Posts: 32	This was a solidly epic return for Nick's TMNT. I'd give it a 9/10 if I wrote a review. For those saying they should not have used the title "City at War," the producers used this name to mark the beginning of what's expected to be the next huge TMNT 2012 arc. With that said, this episode served as an introduction, and the next few episodes will really showcase a "City at War" (Don Visio, Stockman and his insects, Tiger Claw, the purple dragons, etc.). The fight scenes were great, Shinigami was a great new addition, and it'll be very interesting to see how Auman and company continue this storyline. As for the Shredder, if you honestly believe that Splinter inflicted that mass amount of damage onto him, you're crazy. I believe that Stockman did multiple experiments on the Shredder post-Earth's Last Stand, and judging Saki's condition, not all of them went well. However, Stockman just seemed to perfect his Mutagen Steroids, and he fed it to the Shredder during this episode's end. Shredder will eventually reemerge, juiced to the eyeball, and he'll have his way with the Turtles. Why would Shredder do this if he was already dominant and able to beat the Turtles? Simple - Master Splinter (I mean, did you see what he did to him last episode?) All in all, this episode was a superb entry, and I'm looking forward to seeing how it plays out. Next week: The Broken Foot! P.S. How was April OP? She lost to Shinigami (twice). Fishface got the better of her. And she only "defeated" Tiger Claw after throwing smoke in his face, and nailing him with a low blow. Not sure how that's OP.

08-14-2016, 12:37 PM	#38
victory_angel Foot Elite Join Date: Jul 2013 Location: Ca Posts: 3,108	I can't place where the Shredder's new lair is in the TMNT universe. But it kinda looked like Falling Water by Frank Lloyd Wright. __________________

08-14-2016, 12:39 PM	#39
Autbot_Benz Hellblazer Join Date: Jun 2014 Location: Ventura California Posts: 9,130	I was wondering if with this version of Super Shredder they are going the route of bane, where Shredder clicks a button on his arm and the mutagen makes grow massive and super muscular. __________________ I respect what FW cartoon did for the turtles franchise but it is the most overrated and hard to watch of the 3 turtles cartoons. Last edited by Autbot_Benz; 08-14-2016 at 01:03 PM.

08-14-2016, 12:43 PM	#40
matteso586 Stone Warrior Join Date: Oct 2014 Posts: 712	Even after two seasons, Tiger Claw is still a bada** crafty genius. He even quickly noticed that Karai called for help. Shinigami being an old friend from Japan, makes me want to see a flashback of Karai's childhood. If Within the Woods taught us anything, mutagenic medicine i not going to end well. Wish I could see that new intro in slow motion. So I could easily identify who's in the "good guys win, the bad guys lose" part.